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Honda Indy Toronto outlook takes surprising turn

Canadian driver Alex Tagliani asked students from across Canada to help design his helmet and car for Labour Day racing at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park near Bowmanville. The design winner was Leah Johnson, right, from Erin, Ont. (Carlos Osorio / Toronto Star)

By Norris McDonaldWheels Editor

Fri., Aug. 29, 2014

After several weeks of obfuscation over the timing and location of the 2015 Honda Indy Toronto, the race’s owners, Savoree-Green Promotions of Indianapolis and representatives of Canadian Tire Motorsport Park near Bowmanville announced Friday that although no decision has been reached, they have discussed moving the race temporarily.

To make the somewhat muddy scenario even murkier, the Verizon IndyCar Series announced later Friday that a race held in Houston this June would not be held in 2015, which some say could open up a slot for the Toronto race to be held once again at Exhibition Place, as it has been every year but one since 1986.

The spanner in the works is the Pan Am Games, which open in Toronto next July 10. Since the inaugural Molson Indy, the race has been held in mid-July but the Games will prevent that from happening next year.

One solution appeared to be moving the Toronto race back to a weekend in June but it would then have to fit into the IndyCar schedule, which this year was made up of 19 races.

There had been suggestions previously that it could be moved to the Canadian Tire track, a permanent road-racing circuit about an hour east of Toronto that was previously known as Mosport Park and is the scene this weekend of the NASCAR-sanctioned Chevrolet Silverado 250 truck race, but queries were met either with denials or deflections.

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In a statement that came out of the blue Friday, Charlie Johnstone, president of the Honda Indy Toronto, said the Games “have forced us to consider alternative dates and venues for next year’s race” and an announcement would be made shortly.

Ron Fellows, co-owner of the Bowmanville-area facility, confirmed an IndyCar track inspector had visited and made some suggestions that would make the track safer for the swift Indy cars. Then, without tipping his hand about what he knew could be coming next, Fellows added:

“It’s exciting. How could it not be? We weren’t surprised when (Savoree-Green) approached us. I’d say ‘flattered’ would better describe it. They are very good at what they do. The motorsport community is very small and we’re all in the same business, and if there’s anything we can do to help them we will. It’s important to keep an IndyCar event in Canada.”

Canadian IndyCar veteran Alex Tagliani of Montreal, on hand this weekend to race in not only the NASCAR Camping World Series truck race but also the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series for late-model stock cars, said he is all in favour of an Indy race at the circuit 18 kilometres north of Bowmanville.

“I think that in order to host an IndyCar race, with the demands on safety that would be required, it would be nothing but beneficial for Canadian motorsport generally,” he said. “Then after that happened, even if the IndyCar race wanted to go back to Toronto, there would be a track capable of holding any motorsport event in the world.”

Tagliani is one of the hardest working of all race drivers. This year he’s raced in the IndyCar, NASCAR Nationwide, TUDOR United SportsCar, NASCAR Canadian Tire and now the Camping World Truck Series.

“I was thinking of putting another driver in the stock car (for the NASCAR Canadian Tire race), but we had a cross-Canada competition to design my car and helmet for this race and I couldn’t see me not racing in it.”

But how hard will it be to go from the stock car to the truck, considering both qualifying sessions will be held Saturday and both races Sunday, with the stock cars going in the morning and the headlining trucks taking the green flag at 1:30 in the afternoon?.

“You can’t take it lightly,” he said. “After you finish your interview, I’m shutting off completely. I will just relax until I go to work tomorrow.

“The two vehicles are quite different. You don’t want to drive one like you do the other. The NASCAR Canada car is very light with a fibreglass body; the truck is basically steel. It’s heavy. But the trucks have better brakes than the car. You don’t want to confuse the two. Not a good idea.”

Action will start early Saturday with Canadian Touring Car Series qualifying. This series will race Saturday and Sunday, as will the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada series.

The Canadian Tire Series stock cars qualify late Saturday afternoon, followed by the Camping World Series trucks. On Sunday, the Pinty’s Presents the Clarington 200 for stock cars goes to the post at 10 a.m. The Chevrolet Silverado 250 follows after lunch.

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